Stroudsburg school board OKs new hires

Stroudsburg school officials have approved the hiring of a new junior high school principal and an assistant business manager for the district.

CHRISTINA TATU

Stroudsburg school officials have approved the hiring of a new junior high school principal and an assistant business manager for the district.

School board members approved the new employees in a vote of 6-3 Wednesday night.

School board members Judy Magann, Merlyn Clarke, John Jakobsen, Rod Baechtold Jr., Laurie Woods and Robert Yarnall voted in favor of the positions, which were approved as a list, not separately.

Members Bill White and Bill Martin voted no, and Richard Pierce, who was on vacation and called into the meeting to cast his vote, abstained.

In April, the board approved the creation of an assistant business manager position, after it was suggested by Business Manager Don Jennings.

There's not enough time for one person to do the business manager's job, Jennings had said, noting he would be able to more effectively provide the board with budgeting information if he had help.

Donna Tolley, a business manager for two K-6 schools in New Jersey, will be the district's new assistant business manager. Tolley was hired at an annual salary of $95,000.

Jennings wasn't exactly sure when Tolley will start, but he expects sometime in mid-August.

Jennings was unsure of her salary at her current job, but said she does make more money as business manager of the West Amwell Township Elementary School in West Amwell, N.J., and the Lambertville Elementary School in Lambertville, N.J.

Tolley is making a long-term investment by coming to Stroudsburg, he said.

"Her plan has been to relocate to Pennsylvania, and she is aware, because we advertised it that way, that I will be retiring in the next one to two years, so there would be an opportunity for her to become business manager," Jennings said.

The district also approved the hiring of Ryan Cron, who replaces recently retired junior high school Principal Maryellen Mross.

Cron, who has previously served as an assistant principal at the high school, was hired at an annual salary of $87,500.

Cron, was hired as an assistant principal by the district in 2010 at a salary of $64,000.

However, he was laid off by the district last year as a result of budget cuts, Jennings said.

After being laid off, Cron went to work as an assistant principal at Wind Gap Middle School in Pen Argyl.

The personnel list approved by the school board also included the hiring of Jillian Haubrich as a certified school nurse at an annual salary of $52,300 and Linda Scardingo as a school psychologist at an annual salary of $68,192.